The sun brightened in the horizon with his supreme glory, the hazy melodious sound of birds twittering was making the surroundings more pleasant, and the moderate wind seemed so gentle, quietly moving the leaves along with it. The early morning orange rays slid through the window and woke Jalal with a content smile on his face. After many nights; It was the most peaceful, soothing sleep.

Jodha was still sleeping, resting her head on Jalal's shoulder and holding his top tightly like her possession.

While looking at divine glory, a thought ran through his mind, 'Why can't I see her in pain? Why can't I take my eyes off her? Just because of her selfless nature and her purity make her different from others. She knows that she is a queen of my heart, but still, she never showed off to others. I can see the deep love in her eyes for me, I can feel the profound longing for me, but something is holding her away. Earlier, I thought she needed some time to adjust to the new culture and build trust. Surprisingly, her faith in me didn't move a bit, even after my horrible accusations. I feel she deeply cares for me and probably loves me, then what is preventing her from admitting it? No matter what happens, I will never let her go away from me; it feels like sunset down and never rise again without her. Probably I would never admit it, but she is the only person who feels the emptiness of my life. I guess the only option is to wait for the day she accepts me entirely, but I wish I knew what is preventing her from admitting me; this guessing game is making me more desperate. Weirdly, I am feeling out of this world just because she is gripping my top possessively. I am feeling heavenly pleasure just being with you. Her one small smile rouses millions of flowers in my heart.

I have never felt so fresh and energetic in the morning. Waking up in the morning like this, it's an indescribable experience. I have never let my queens sleep with me throughout the night; even with Rukaiya, I go back to my chamber after the sensual pleasure. But Jodha, your presence around me assures me of my heart's existence. He smirked, 'She has not a single clue how my harem queens and concubine are desperate to please me. I have experienced every kind of sensual pleasure, not with one woman but many together, but all this feels too shallow when it comes to Jodha. On the contrary, it's the opposite. I want to please her; just being with Jodha, it gives unexplainable joy.'

It was becoming difficult for him to just look at her; he turned carefully and leaned towards her and kissed her gently on her forehead and moved her head and hand on the side. With his little movement, she realized he was awake. She slowly opened her eyes and saw him staring at her sensually without a blink.

With a smile, he whispered in her ears, "Good Morning, my dearest Queen."

Jodha felt uncomfortable with his passionate gaze. Her dupatta was out of place, and her bosom was exposed; it showed her deep cleavage and bare waist. The sudden realization made her conscious, she swiftly got up from the bed to cover-up, but before she could move further away from him, Jalal pulled her back in bed next to him, leaned towards her, and instantly locked her with both hands. Jodha's face turned red with a blush; she couldn't lift her long and beautiful eyelashes. His constant wanting gaze was making her blush heavily.

"Shahenshah, let me go," she said in a whisper.

"First, you call me by my name, not Shahenshah."

"No, I can't."

"Yes, you can," he insisted.

"Let me go, Shahenshah." She irritably said

"I will let you go, but first, you call me Jalal." Replied with his stubborn gaze.

She tried to explain, "I can't call you by your name. Last night it was a mistake."

"A beautiful, tempting mistake." He whispered sensually once again.

"As a Shahenshah, I am ordering you when we are alone; you call me by my name."

"When we are alone, you are my husband, not Shahenshah, so don't command me." He is so annoying I can't call him by his name.

With a pleasing tone, Jalal replied, "Okay, then as a husband, I am telling you to call me by my name."

"No"

"Yes"

"No... NO NO" She stubbornly replied

"I won't let you move from here until you call me by name. Stay here the entire day. I have no problem at all."

"No, Jalal, I am not going to call you by your name. No way," She responded quickly without thinking. Instantly she realized her slip up; she just called him Jalal.

Jalal chuckled, seeing the expression on her face.

The way you say my name it sounds exclusive. The hesitation in your sound makes it much more unique and different than others.

She looked at him bashfully. "Jalal, please let me go."

He smirked at her and said, "I can let you go, but first you have to." before he finished his sentence, she got success in releasing her hand from him and moved away from there. Jalal was still relaxing on the bed, lying down on the pillow and watching her fixing her clothes and hair.

Jodha casually said, "Shahenshah, I am delighted today because it's a Holi and Holi is one of my favorite festivals. Every year we have so much fun."

"We don't celebrate this festival in Agra. I know very little about Holi." He responded.

"Shahenshah, Holi is a Hindu religious festival; it's a festival of colors and love. Hindus believe it is a time of enjoying spring's bright colors and saying farewell to winter. Children and youth spray colored (powder) Gulal at each other, laugh, and celebrate, while elders tend to smear gulal on each other's face. We celebrate Holi in a big way in Amer. We have invited many Rajvashi Kings, and few good friends of mine are also coming to celebrate today." she took a brief break and continued in a fascinating tone, "Every year on Holi, we used to play together all day long and at night, dance on Dhol (drum). I miss those days; we use to have so much fun, run out of the palace, going to the lake, horse riding like a free bird. Since I am married, now I am stuck in the palace with all the restrictions." She pouted while finishing the last sentence

Jalal listened to her naive chat and responded in calm, "Jodha, you are so innocent; you still have the heart of a child and enjoy everything with so much enthusiasm. I never got a chance to enjoy my childhood like this. I remember very few things from my childhood. The only part I remember well is me and Rukaiya having so much fun together, but we both had so many restrictions. We got married at a young age, and my father also died at an early age, so I had so many responsibilities."

"Tell me about your friends. Are they coming for Holi?" Jalal curiously asked

Jodha excitedly reacted, "Yes, all of them are coming. Prince Surya Vadan from kingdom Jaipur and His sister Lilavati and Price Dharam from kingdom Kanakpur and his sister Kanika are coming for the Holi celebration. Surya and Dharam are both the best friends of Surajmal bhaisa. Surya and I are best friends from childhood. Lilavati is my best friend, too; we always share every small secret of our life. She is the only one who knows every secret of mine. She just got married; I can't wait for them to come. You will enjoy their company, but everyone will miss Sujamal bhaisa" her sound turned dim at Sujamal's mention.

"So every Holi, you all get together?" Jalal asked eagerly.

"Yes! Almost every festival we get together. They all come here during Ghangor and Holi festivals and stay here for about a week. We usually visit their states to celebrate Diwali festivals. In Jaipur, they have a huge grand fair once a year at the time of Diwali. And also sometimes we all meet at the time of weddings and other functions." She replied excitedly.

With a fit of slight jealousy, Jalal looked at Jodha and enquired: "So do you know all of them from your childhood?"

"Yes!" she carelessly replied.

Jalal's eyes turned suspiciously shady. "Did they come to our wedding?" he asked in a baffled tone.

She scowled at him and sarcastically said, "No!!! No one came to attend my wedding, and I don't need to explain why!" She rolled her eyes at him. "All Rajvanshi kings were against our wedding, including my best friend, Surya. He came before our wedding to see me and tried to convince me very hard not to get married to you. He was even ready to talk to my father. But for me, Amer is everything, so for Amer, I agreed for our alliance."

"Oh!!! So your friend Surya tried his best to keep us apart." He sardonically said

"He is my closest friend, and his intentions were towards my good wish." She responded dryly.

"Oh... so you regret your decision." He bitterly asked

She looked at him pointedly and decided not to answer. After a few seconds of silence, she said, "I have to get ready quickly, or I will be late for the temple."

Ohh... she still regrets it, probably that is why she is keeping me away from him. And who is this Surya? She is so excited to meet him, and he advised her not to marry me. Jalal didn't know how to react to this, but learning about Surya created a fit of unknown jealousy in his heart.

"Wow! I am very much interested in meeting this best friend of yours who really, truly advises you for your better life." In a sarcastic tone, he snapped while getting up from the bed; his face looked irritated.

Jodha realized Jalal was getting a little annoyed and envious. So she decided to tease him more. "Yes, Shahenshah! Indeed, he is a very nice person; any girl would be happy to be with him. He is very charming and caring. Also, he is brave and good at sword fighting too. Every time we meet, we practice our fencing together. Do you know, at the time of last Ghangor, when I got engaged with King Suryabhan, my parents received a proposal from Surya too, but unfortunately that time, my engagement was already fixed? His proposal came a little late, and, you know, Lila also always wanted me to get married to her brother Surya. She used to tease us all the time, she always thought that I loved Surya, but I don't blame her; we were so close to each other. We were together all the time and the way Surya cares for me, she always suspected, but for me, Surya has always been my best friend and advisor."

Jalal, with anger and fire in the heart in an annoying tone, asked, "Oh! So your best friend wanted to marry you?"

Jodha, with a defending tone, replied, "Why? What is wrong with that? You are also married to your best friend!"

His anger boiled up with jealousy; tetchily, he enquired, "Did you also wanted to marry him, Jodha?"

Jodha looked at him from the corner of her eyes and smirked, seeing his sore face. She enjoyed seeing his anger and possessiveness about her.

She responded in an austere, calm, and collected tone, "I don't see any reason why not? He knew me very well; he respected me. He cared about me; He is a good looking, handsome prince and future king of three states. He is also from a royal family Hindu Rajput and my best friend's brother, and most importantly, he always trusted and supported me in my every decision."

Hearing, Jalal's entire body burned in the blaze, his eyes turned dark; he shouted, "Enough, Jodha, I got it, he is faultless, and he is the finest. Now can I go and get dressed for the big celebration of Holi?" With irony, he stated in an asserting tone.

Jodha coldly smirked and pretended as if nothing happened; "Hmm Certainly, Shahenshah!"

He crossly got up and walked towards the door.

"Can you please wait, Shahenshah," she yelled.

"What?" he grumpily responded.

To tease him more, she asked, "Shahenshah, can you help me pick a dress for today? I want to look my finest today."

"Queen Jodha, your best friend, is coming today, why don't you ask him to help you? I am getting late." he frustratingly replied.

Jodha, with a little grin on her face, probed, "Why do you sound so grumpy? Are you jealous of Surya?"

Jalal realized his behavior showed his jealousy. Suddenly he changed his tone and replied in a usual manner, "Why would I be jealous of anyone? I have everything I want, including you, if you remember I conquer you."

"How can I forget that I very well know that I am just one of your trophies for Amer conquer?" She replied bitterly.

"JODHA..." he almost shouted... and frustratingly rolled his hands through his hair and closed his eyes to control his anger. After a brief pause, he said in a low tone, "Jodha... you know how to play with my words and hurt me."

Seeing him sad, she regretted her choice of words.

"Shahenshah, I have got something for you." She overlooked his last remark and changed the subject.

Jalal, with an upset look, asked, "What?"

She gave a gorgeous Rajvanshi outfit to Jalal. All over white with a red border, silk Sherwani Kurta and silk Dhoti with a long pearl necklace and said, "Shahenshah, It's a Holi today, and I will be thrilled if you wear this outfit."

He looked at the dress dryly. "Why do you want me to dress like a Rajvanshi. You will be ashamed of my Mughal dress in front of your friends?" He asked techily.

"It's just a gift from me. When we met for the first time, you were in a Rajvanshi outfit, and I wanted to see you again in a Rajvashi outfit, but it's your choice. If you don't want to wear it, then that's fine." She looked at him disappointedly.

Jalal took the outfit from her hand and walked out of there without a word.

Both of them thought at the same time why they fight all the time. Jodha regretted making him jealous, and Jalal repented for mentioning about his conquer at Amer.

Jodha took a shower and quickly finished her daily prayer. Her hairs were still wet. She picked an entirely white outfit with a red border to match Jalal's outfit to wear. She wore all the jewelry made out of beautiful white and red rose flowers.

Jalal also got ready and finished his daily routine; he did Namaj; he met with Abdul to ensure everything was safe and secured. After that, he went back to Jodha's room in the Rajvanshi outfit.

Jodha noticed him in the outfit but didn't comment on anything, which dismayed him. Jalal expected some reaction or comment from her seeing him in Rajvanshi dress, but she didn't say anything.

Maybe, she is still upset. Jalal thought

Jodha was still getting ready; her long, shiny, curly hairs were still a little wet. She looked divine and beautiful in a white outfit with white and red flower jewelry. Jalal never imagined her in flower jewelry; she looked simply stunning.

Jodha finally couldn't hold herself and complimented him casually; while looking at the mirror, she said, "Shahenshah, do you remember when we met for the first time? You were wearing a Rajvanshi outfit; I was completely stunned; you looked so royal and appealing, your confidant, your magnetic personality; my heart stopped breathing for a while after seeing you. When you looked in my eyes and said, you will come back, I knew you would come; I don't know why, but I felt like I've known you forever."

Jalal's anger disappeared with her compliment. While gazing at her, he asked her sarcastically, "Do you still feel you know me?"

She knew what he wanted to hear; she quietly looked at him. Deep pin-drop silence for long seconds. To change the topic, Jodha curiously asked, "How am I looking?"

Jalal scanned her from top to bottom, and confusingly said, "Something is missing!" He walked near the mirror and stood behind her, then took a pinch of sindoor from the sindoor box and filled her maang with love; then, with a content smile, he said, "Now you look complete."

Jodha modestly gazed at him; both were standing and looking at each other without a blink. She bent down with teary eyes and touched his feet to take blessings from him. Jalal was astonished; he put his hand on her head, blessed her, and held her from her shoulders.

Jodha got up with mixed expressions. With a blush on her face, moist shy eyes, and low tone, she informed, "It's Holi today, so it's a custom, the wife takes blessings from her husband." Her shy smile made him crazy, and the way she took blessings and gave him so much respect, he felt overwhelmed. With a soft touch, he kissed her forehead. She felt so shy that she couldn't lift her eyes to see his face.

Jalal pulled her slightly towards him, and in a whispering tone, he said, "Why just blessings? I can give you much more, my dear queen," then he encircled his hand on her waist.

Jodha bashfully mumbled, "Shahenshah, let me go, the door is open."

"Do you want me to close it?" While beholding her gaze, he asked with a tease.

Seeing his intention, she responded in an insisting voice, "Shahenshah, please let me go!!!"

Jalal released her and walked towards the door while staring at her with desire. He closed the door, then with a mischievous look, he walked towards her, seeing his intentions, she coyly walked backward, but he caught her wrist and pulled her towards him.

She mumbled in a low tone while looking at him, "Why have you closed the door, Shahenshah? What are your intentions? "

Jalal grabbed her from her waist and smirked at her and asked, "You want to know what my intentions, Queen Jodha?"

Jodha realized she asked the wrong question. She lowered her eyes.

He sensually gazed at her with his piercing eyes and replied in a low tone, "Jodha, I have closed the door because you have made me so crazy for you; with these alluring colorful flowers and white dress, you have mesmerized me. Every day I see you, and you look more and more beautiful; day and night I am just thinking about you only. My patience is betraying me, and I am slowly losing control. I want you to want me, like my all queens. I want to see the desperation in your eyes for me. You have become my life long obsession. How can I let you go?"

Jodha blushed; hearing praise and his indirect confession, she mumbled in a very faint tone, "So, What do you want?"

Jalal drew her closer and whispered in her ear with a seductive gaze, "I want you" then, with a sensual touch, he kissed her soft pink rosy lips. She closed her eyes and responded to his kiss. Jalal paused to see her desirable look; he took a strand of hair behind her ears, ran his finger on her face, and stopped at her lips. He cupped her face and kissed her again, but this time with more desire. He squeezed her cheeks and kissed her lips with a delicate smooch; he wanted to relish her, taste her sweetness; he nibbled her lips, his desire increased with sparks in his body. He lost all his control over his craving; he started kissing her all over her face with a cavernous lust for more than he grabbed her hair wildly to lift her face so he can kiss on her neck.

Jalal's relentless fervent touch gave her pleasure. She hummed, "Ohhh, Jalal... Ahhh... I am losing my control. let me go."